One step up
by Loconik
Summary: A birthday fic for my pal genevieve! And my first attempt at romance...although i don't think its romance...ergh, read and review, izzy/sora coupling
1. Default Chapter Title

  
Hey! This is a birthday present fic for my pal Genevieve, whose birthday is on the 11th. Its not related to my other series, and its a Sora/Izzy romance-type fic (I say romance type because its not really romance..at least I don't think so..). And just one more thing, MD stands for minidisc. If you don't know what they are, do a search and check them out, cause they're the best media for music ^_^ . Anyways, enjoy!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.  
  
******  
One step up  
  
Koushiro Izumi looked up to the early evening Odaiba sky and smiled. It was grey. Again. The sky had been grey every day for the past month with heavy rain at night, and today looked like it was to follow suit. The rain was to him like Whiskey is to a reformed alcoholic. It was an old friend who offered solace when times were tough, and one that called for him to come back and bath in its comfort, although now he tried to resist its call, to try and shun the memories of days gone by.  
  
He shook his head and reached under his jacket for his Minidisc's remote to move on to the next song. He had been thinking more and more of those times recently, and it worried him since it had taken so long for him to move on. He smiled. He was thinking about it again. Although it was uncomfortable to think about it, he wasn't too concerned, it was a road he'd travelled along and been sure to burn the bridge at the end.   
  
He sighed lightly and crossed the road to a small music store he often stopped at on his way home from work. Passing by the tapes and CD's, he stopped by the MD's and surveyed the new releases. He wrinkled his nose up as he looked at them, they were dominated by Britney Spears and N'Sync christmas compilations, which weren't really his taste. He decided to pass up the acquisition of any new music and left the music shop, ducking down an alley next to it so he could stop by the park and consume the food he'd got from work. Working at a quiet cafe had its advantages, the work wasn't too full on due to the lack of customers, and there was always plenty of food left at the end of the day which, although supposed to be thrown out, usually ended up with the staff. He usually just went home and ate it there, but since his parents were away for a few days he didn't feel any need to hurry, so arriving at the park he sat down at an isolated park bench in a clearing in front of a small copse of trees and opened his bag. The park was very quiet at that time of day, since most people were on their way home after a hard day at the office, so he decided to enjoy the peace and stopped his MD. He took off his headphones, put them in his bag and took out a piece of carrot cake and the coffee he had in a sealed insulated mug. He unwrapped the cake and started to eat it, gazing quietly over the quiet park, which was capped nicely by the darkening sky, indicating that it would start raining shortly, and most likely continue throughout the night. He sipped the coffee slowly, because despite being about 20 minutes old it was still hot thanks to the container.   
  
"My my, aren't we all high class with our cafe lifestyle and colour matched accessories"  
  
Izzy turned around to see Sora smiling down at him, although he instantly saw her smile didn't reflect how she was feeling, as her eyes were red as though she had been crying, and she looked depressed.  
He swallowed quickly and winced in pain as the large mouthful of hot coffee went down, the shock of Sora's voice out of nowhere had caught him in the middle of a sip.  
  
"Ergh..ow, hey Sora, how you doing?"  
  
"Ehh, i'm ok I guess. Mind if I sit down?"  
  
"No, of course not, please do"   
"Oh, would you like a piece of carrot cake, I grabbed a whole bunch from work today" Izzy said smiling.  
  
"I'd love a piece thanks, I haven't eaten since breakfast and I'm starving." Sora took the cake, remove the cling wrap with gusto and took a huge bite.  
  
"Haha, geez you are hungry, why haven't you eaten today?" Izzy asked sniggering as Sora tried to chew the huge bite of cake she had in her mouth.  
  
"Munngh..hff..thhhrr hehe"   
  
"What Sora? You're going round to Tai's tonight for a romantic candlelit dinner and then who knows what later on.." Izzy said jokingly, and raising his arms over his chest as Sora attacked him  
  
"Mnnthh..hmm...Tai and I are not going out, believe me!" Sora snapped back viciously, causing him to recoil slightly.  
  
"Mmm, ok, sorry I was only joking around" Izzy replied apologeticaly  
  
"No I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped like that, its just I get a little tired of everyone expecting us to be together, I mean don't get me wrong, Tai's great, and I love him as a friend, I love all of you as friends, and I'm sure you feel the same, but we're just too different to have a relationship like that"  
  
Izzy sensed he had touched on a somewhat important topic, and the way Sora was speaking and pouring her heart out he sensed something was up.  
  
"Umm, Sora, are you ok?" He motioned hesitantly, preparing himself for the reply which he sensed would an emotional one  
  
"It's my mom" She said with a sigh, "Ever since she met that guy Steve I was telling you about she's been acting awfully, like nothing I do is right and that I should keep the house tidier instead of playing soccer all the time, and I don't show her enough respect. I don't get it, its just all of a sudden she hates me" She wiped away a tear that had formed in the corner of her eye with her gloved hand, briefly exposing the dark red scar that ran along her wrist.  
Izzy saw it but didn't flinch. It was a badge he wore as well, and they had both helped each other through the 'experience', which had brought them to be very close, and they confided with each other when things were down, and celebrated likewise when things were happy.  
  
Out of the eight they were the closest pairing, beneath their surface differences they were very much alike and were comfortable talking for hours or sitting together in peace. They had spent many nights talking during their time in the digiworld while the others slept, talking quietly about their lives back in the real world. They had never talked about the digiworld or the battles, instead they spent the hours musing over their pasts, in particular the parental situation. This topic often ended with them shedding tears, but it always brought them closer, and they often watched the sun rise over the digital world embraced, always as friends, happy for the solace of the companionship.  
  
"Steve's a jerk isn't he?" Izzy asked, putting a comforting arm around her shoulders and pulling her closer to his smaller frame, which was slightly awkward, but she sat lower on the bench and moved in, glad for the feeling of security he gave her.  
  
She sniffed and wiped away another tear. "I don't know.. he's rich and has really high standards, his house is immaculate so I think that's why mom gets so stressed at me when he's going to come round"  
  
"Hmm, you know how rich people are, they seem to have an aura which makes everyone else feel inadequate, and I bet that's why your mom acts that way, she probably really wants the relationship to work so she's trying to impress him." Izzy said, despite never having met Steve he could picture him clearly, and he imagined he was probably a pretentious jerk, but of course he would never have said that, he cared about Sora too much.  
  
"Yeah, but he treats me with such scorn, and my mom changes totally when he's around, like the other day. I came home from soccer practise, and it had been raining all day, so as you could guess I was covered in mud, mainly thanks to Tai making sure I knew the importance of always wearing shin pads, and I got home and went to greet my mom like I always do, and they were sitting on the couch watching tv. I said a nice cheerful hi, and they glanced up at me and went back to watching the show"  
  
"So they just ignored you?" Izzy questioned, knotting the string of her helmet around his finger as he held her. From a passer-bys perspective they would have looked like the ideal teen couple, except for the fact that Izzy was hardly the right size to look like the protective boyfriend you usually saw.  
  
"Yeah, my mom just glanced up at me then looked at Steve with one of those 'I'm so sorry, she usually doesn't behave like this looks', but when he's not there she always comes over and gives me a hug and asks me how it went"  
  
"So her whole attitude changes when she's around him?"   
  
"Yeah, exactly, and vice versa"  
  
"Oh?" Izzy suspected maybe Steve was nice to Sora, perhaps just kissing up to her so she would be an ally towards his marriage plight.  
  
"Yeah, Steve's great when he's with me and not mom, he's really funny and generous, basically the epitome of that cliché"  
  
"Is..is he for real though, do you think?" Izzy asked hesitantly  
  
"Oh god no" Sora replied flatly  
  
"No?"  
  
"I know he's just sucking up to me so he can marry my mom, then the minute the honeymoons over, it becomes 'Where can I send this little bitch off to so I can be happy', and I'll get shunned by both of them. That's why I'm glad my mom doesn't want to marry him."  
  
"What?" This revelation blew Izzy out of the water, the way Sora had been talking it was as though her life was about to be ruined.  
  
"Yep, my mom was just so lonely without anyone her own age that she thought loved her, and so she met Steve and they started going out. He's a good thing for her, I mean she's much happier and nicer to me when he's not around, so I'm happy for her in that respect, but it still saddens me the way she has to treat me when he's around"  
  
"So do you think he's going to ask her to marry him?"  
  
"Undoubtedly. And of course when she says no I think Steve might not be quite so willing to stick around anymore, so when he goes my mom will go back to treating me nicely all the time, plus she'll be happier for having the relationship"  
  
"Erghh..ok Sora, it sounds a bit bizarre...but I guess so long as it works out as you said and you're happy it must be ok"   
  
"Thanks Izzy, I'm not that bigger fan of the whole thing, but I guess we all need someone to love us, and to love" Sora replied acceptingly  
  
"Oh, do you have anyone?" Izzy questioned, although the thought of him and Sora never crossed his mind.  
  
"Of course, I've got you"  
  
Izzy didn't reply, he just stared down at Sora with wide eyes. She put her head back and looked up at him, smiling.  
  
"You know we're perfect for each other, we're the closest of friends so I guess we'd be a great couple"  
  
Izzy thought about this and it dawned on him what she was saying was right. They had had experiences so similar to each other, and because of this they talked a lot and thus knew every intimate detail of the other. She was closer to him than anyone else, and he knew it was true vice versa. Since they were such close friends he realised if they had a relationship chances are they would always be together.  
  
"Well Sora, I don't know much about romance or relationships, but I can honestly tell you I love you as a friend, and I know I could love you on a higher level. So what do you think?"  
  
"I think you know my answer" Sora said smiling up at him.  
  
He smiled and nodded. No more was said at that time. It didn't have to be. They remained on the bench for several more hours, Sora nestled into his chest, his arms carefully around her just sitting quietly, watching the city move past them, enjoying their new found interaction level.   
  
*****  
Erghh..I don't know if I should call that a romance fic...no wait, I'm not going to call it a romance fic. Cause I honestly don't know if its romance. What do you think it should be? Hey, suggest a new category, you never know it might be the most popular type of fic written in the future, and you'll get all the credit!! (+ I'll get the prestige of having the first one of its type written lol, joke ^_^),  
Anyways happy birthday gen, I hope you enjoyed that, I know its a little dark but its pretty happy for me ^_^, hehe hope you liked it, and everyone please review! Thanks!  
  
  



	2. One step up part 3

Hey, for the benefit of those who haven't read part two of this fic (written by my pal Geneviève, not me), you may want to go and read it.Be warned, this fic contains an event similar to a school shooting, please do not read this fic if this is an issue. Thankyou.

Thanks to those of you who have reviewed this series, and to those of you who have read my fics before, the final chapter of Suffer so alone will be out soon.

*****

Sora awoke with a start, her eyes snapping open and her face resembling the proverbial Deer in the headlights, thoughts streaming through her sleep dulled mind as she tried to gather what was going on. She took in her surroundings, and after several seconds relaxed and sighed, lulling back into the soft bedding.

She closed her eyes and smiled, feeling her racing heart thumping in her chest, letting it slow as she let relief wash over her. Nightmares had been plaguing her dreams since Steve became a permanent fixture in her life, there was so much uncertainty and her worst fear was that her one last rock would fall to the sands.

She shuffled over onto her side and opened her eyes. He was still there, sleeping peacefully, his hair a wild and contrasting mess on the plain white pillow, his face relaxed and soft. Sora sighed with momentary contentment and carefully moved in closer to him, not too close as to wake him, but close enough so that she felt secure, his presence made all the horrible things in her life seem conquerable.

*****

Sora sighed sleepily and rolled over, her eyes heavy with sleep, her mind and body content and relaxed. She yawned and opened her eyes slightly to look at the glowing green digits on the bedside clock.

8.14

She had dozed off. Not that it mattered of course, it was Sunday, and since her mothers flower shop was now nothing more than a memory and Steve paid their way nicely she had no need to work, and so was obligated to do nothing. If it had been her choice she would have spent every moment with Izzy, he was the only one she felt truly comfortable around, the only person who didn't judge her and the only one who was on her level. 

Without lifting her head from the pillow she cast an eye around the room searching for him. She hoped he hadn't had to work today. Last night had been typical. Her mother and her had had a disagreement, Steve had stood by making a biased comment every now and again until Sora had given up on them, they were such a 'team'. Angered and humiliated she had done what she had so many times. She had hurried through the raging winter night to Izzy's apartment, rapped on his door and waited there soaked and crying. A short while later he had appeared at the door, dressed in boxers and a t-shirt, dark circles under his eyes and his hair messed around. But he was not angry. Seeing him had reduced her to a forlorn damsel-in-distress type figure, and he had silently led her out of the cold and into the apartment where she had collapsed sobbing on the carpeted floor, and he had guided her down and held her, getting soaked from her wet clothes but not minding, and she had allowed all her emotions to flood out, relieved to be in his presence.

She looked at him affectionately again and closed her eyes.

Sora awoke some time later, feeling more fatigued and heavy lidded than earlier. Her late night escapade had left her sapped of energy, and she could barely keep her eyes open.

8.43

It had only been half an hour luckily. Despite her heavy and uncooperative head, she looked over next to her where he had been sleeping, but saw he was gone. She shuffled up to a sitting position and yawned, then looked around. She saw him sitting by his computer, coffee in hand as always, checking email and killing time before he had to leave. Sora stretched and yawned again, making him turn his head to smile at her. 

He looked very tired.

She knew what he had to live up to to keep his meagre self-confidence up over zero. Memories of test results flashed through her mind, the one time when he had been beaten by someone else in the class, the 'Oooohh…lost it eh? Haha you must suck at this subject…why don't you ask him for some advice' from the intellectual lightweights in the class had rained down thick and fast. It was that dull spite that spilled from those poorly academically inclined that Sora knew hurt Izzy, In his mind all he had were test marks, and when he didn't excel at them it seemed to him as if he was not special in any way. 

They had exams in two months time, but she knew he had started study weeks ago, putting in hours per night over his normal homework time, and it was taking its toll. He had lost weight she noticed, plainly due to the combination of his constant hard work, self-distaste, and from the constant worry that plagued him about other people, which at times resulted in him disappearing into the bathroom before they left the apartment, to emerge shortly wiping his mouth and shaking. She had consoled him one time, and it had been like nothing she had experienced before. He had been clammy to touch, jittery and had clutched onto her desperately as she soothed him. 

A tear pricked the corner of her eye as she thought about that moment and how much it hurt her for him to be that way, to live his life in chronic fear of others. 

Looking at him smiling bravely at her filled her heart with love, she wanted to hug him close and make him feel better as he always did for her without fail, but he was standing and collecting his backpack, making it apparent he was about to leave for work.

She checked the time and realised he would be working a long day today, from 9 until 6. Nine hours in his state. She felt worried for him, but he came over and sat next to her, pulling on the shoulder straps of his backpack like he always did when he was nervous. 

She leaned forward and hugged him, and he did so back, clutching her tightly, she felt his body relax when he put his arms around her, and it made her feel better she could do that for him.

"Feeling better this morning?" He asked softly

"Yes..thank..thanks for being there as always"

"Not a problem"

He let go and she realised her hold on him, and he stood up. 

"Well, I better go now"

"Ok, have fun" She said affectionately, and he smiled and left. She watched him as he left, his short stature and fiery head giving him the impression of some of the skaters she saw occasionally in town, despite his plain, boring work clothes. That always made her smile.

Although she always felt somewhat guilty, she stayed in his bed watching tv for a couple of hours, then got up, showered and went into the kitchen. His parents were away as always, their jobs resulted in them travelling more than they were home, so she seldom saw them. Despite this she was very close to them, she felt closer to them than to her own mother, and they felt likewise. On the weekends they were home and when she had been sleeping there, she had showered and breakfasted there without feeling out of place in the slightest, Izzy's mother Yasashii (A/N:I don't know if that works but it sounds right) always greeted her on these occasions with a hug, and the two openly talked while they breakfasted, it made no difference whether Izzy was there or not, he worked every Sunday so the latter was the more common occurrence. Often the two of them walked together into town and did what mothers and daughters normally did, but Sora was more comfortable doing it with Yasashii than her own mother. She was like a daughter to them, and they were so giving it made her feel so good to be with them. She almost wished she was formally a part of their family, but the situation held more advantages, she and Izzy would never be as close as they were if she was an Izumi.

The kitchen was perfect, the only dish being the coffee cup Izzy had used that morning. No matter how long he had to work, he always tidied the house before he left, Sora had tried telling him to let her do it, but he had smiled and given a completely false Ok. She smiled and got a cup out, she had never liked coffee before, but it was impossible to avoid it with Izzy, he seemed to live on it, and she had grown to like it almost as much.

Sora sighed and glanced out the window. It was raining as usual, a soft rain which fell from a grey sky which covered the city. She flicked channels aimlessly, there was nothing on and she wished Izzy would get home, it was quarter past six so with luck he had finished and was on his way.

A key rattled in the lock and Sora looked up from the magazine she was reading

7.10

She stood up and turned to see a sight which melted her heart. Izzy was struggling with the door lock, soaked from head to toe and looking extremely tired and run down. He had his heavy backpack on which pulled his back down, and clutched in his shaking hands were two plastic bags. He had bought dinner for them.

She walked over to him as he fought with the key, and took the bags. He looked up her, his frown fading to a tired smile, and unravelled the bag handles from around his scarred wrists so she could take them.

She took the food to the kitchen and turned to him, standing there pulling the straps of his backpack from his shoulders, soaked. 

He was so caring. Despite nine hours of work, all the pressures he faced and horrible weather, he had still thought to get dinner for her, out of his meagre wages.

"Busy day?"

"Eghhhh…don't ask, we didn't finish until quarter to seven we got so far behind" He replied softly, hauling his backpack of his bag and dumping it to the ground.

"I'll go have a shower, you can start if you want" He motioned towards the food, and then moved past her, giving her shoulder a squeeze in the process, to the bathroom.

Izzy awoke with a start at the harsh ring of the alarm, and swiped at the bedside table. The buzzing ceased and was replaced with the drone of the radio announcer

"And once again today will be overcast with light showers turning to heavy rain later tonight.."

He sighed and yawned. Sora groaned slightly and rolled over.

"Morning"

"What time is it?" She replied, her voice drugged with sleep

"7"

"I don't want to get up"

"Welcome to the fold" Izzy replied flatly, rubbing his temples and yawning at the same time, his brow knotted at the thought of having to face yet another school day.

Although the curtains were closed, the light that lay behind them was lax and grey, mimicking the faceless weatherman's prediction. Monday, grey and flat.

They lay there for several further minutes, Sora dozed off, but Izzy lay still with his eyes closed, trying to gain the momentum to face the world, when all he wanted to do was stay where he was, with the one he loved and who felt likewise, and away from the cruel teenage society which plagued him so. Like every morning, like every Monday morning in particular, he contemplated staying where he was and calling the school to say he was sick, but even while doing so he knew it would never happen, despite his fears the fear of failure and falling behind still stood paramount.

7.10

He yawned again, and leaving Sora where she was, solemnly climbed out of bed and stumbled to the bathroom, collecting his uniform on the way. While he waited for the showers stream to heat up, he studied his face in the mirror. It had thinned, his cheek bones were protruding more than they had, his eyes were more sunken and heavier set, his forehead and eyebrows knotted closer in more of a frown, and he looked vacant and worried. He sighed and shook his head, he wished it were the holidays. They were days of bliss, where he awoke at 7 o'clock without fail, but shortly after with the realisation he didn't have to go anywhere. That was the best feeing in the world to him. To initially dread the school day, then to realise it didn't exist that day. 

A short time later he emerged from the bathroom, feeling far less tired and slightly more capable of facing the day than earlier, and headed for the kitchen. He did what he always did when he awoke with Sora on a school day. He made breakfast for the two of them, then carried it into his room where Sora lay asleep. He put the tray down on his desk, and then knelt down by his bed, in front of his girlfriends sleeping face. He leaned forward and kissed her gently on the lips, and she stirred, then opened her eyes. She pulled back in shock, then realising what was going on, smiled and stretched.

"What a nice surprise, to be awakened by my prince charming"

Izzy rolled his eyes and stood up to bring the tray over, Sora pulled cliché lines like that to annoy him, he hated that whole gushy love thing. He had received more than one bruised eye or rib from giving pathetic teen-lovesick couples scornful looks, because by his luck the dim jock usually giving out the love crap to his equally dim and without fail, slutty girlfriend saw him mal-eyeing them and gave chase.

He put the tray down on the bedside table on Sora's side of the bed and sat down next to her, standing up momentarily while she shuffled round into a sitting position, then leaving her side to retrieve the tv remote which inevitably found its way halfway across the room by who knows what means.

Flicking the tv on, he took the coffee Sora was handing him, and then turned to the news. 

"Another massacre has claimed the lives of 11 school children, the gunman was believed to be.." 

"Eghh, another shooting, whats wrong with our society" Sora passively mused whilst struggling with the bed covers, and causing Izzy to bite his tongue. Everyone was too frightened of the subject to even talk about it, and although Izzy understood why, he couldn't help thinking about the reason why it happened. So many of the other students at his school were so engrossed in themselves that as a result they made life a misery for many others. Izzy shivered and inadvertently glanced down at his wrists, which bore grim reminders of the power that one individual can exert over another.

"Change the channel, this news is depressing" 

The two walked together silently along the slick pavement, Sora shivering and pulling her jacket tighter around herself, Izzy keeping his eyes trained at the pavement, lost in thought as always.

"When is this weather going to let up.." Sora motioned, attempting to make conversation as thunder rumbled way off in the distance

"Hmm?"

"I was just wondering when this rains going to let up, its been like this for weeks now..it gets depressing"

"It does" Izzy replied flatly, still partly lost in thought as they got closer to the schools entrance.

"Well, here we are…another day" Sora sighed as they passed into the school grounds, past one of the main buildings where groups of students were standing, sheltering from the rain.

The ambient noise of the school and the city was shattered as a series of shots blasted to Sora's ears, and instinctively she dived for the ground, sheltering her head with her hands as panic induced instinct took over. Everywhere around her, screams pierced the air, shouts of fear rang out, and still the shots continued, thudding into her, making her shake with panic as they came one after another. 

Eventually they stopped, and the air was filled with the groans and crying of people in pain, people in shock. Her mind raced, feeling for pain over her body, and finding none, allowing her to raise her head slightly to look around.

Izzy lay slumped next to her, his backpack facing her and blocking a clear view. Still shaking from the shock, she motioned towards him, tugging on the arm of his jacket gently, as if trying to get his attention without anyone else noticing.

She kept pulling on his sleeve for several seconds until her mind cleared enough to hear his breathing. It was rasped and shallow, sounding like it pained to do so.

She moved closer to him, looking around nervously, seeing scared students looking, some motioning, to the gate behind her. 

It wasn't a student

Flashed through her mind.

She shuffled onto her knees, and pulled Izzy over to her, and her heart froze when she saw the concrete beneath him.

It was stained red, its slick surface streaked with sickly strands in the space where Izzy was doubled over, his eyes half closed with pain and shocked concentration.

Sora gagged and pulled him up to an almost sitting position. He made a pained gasp as she did so, and his hand waved towards his white shirt, which was wet and bloodied. With a mixture of horror and instinct, Sora moved her hand to the blood, then raised her hand to her face, her eyes petrified as she stared at it. 

Her fingers were plastered with the blood, strands of it running down her arm as the rain fell. 

She pulled him closer to herself as she began to realise what had happened.

"He.Hel" She tried to force a choked help, but it stuck in her throat and she gagged. 

Izzy was dying.

It hit her. She dropped her hands back to his chest and clutched him to her kneeling form, her shocked gags turning to sobs, her head dropping to be close to his.

His breathing was harsher, his face contorted with pain with every intake. His brow was furrowed in pain, and his black eyes began to drift and glaze. She clutched him tighter as the sobs racked her body.

And then as his blood ran down his chest, covering her hands as she held him, he coughed violently, choked with blood as his body fell apart from the wound, but he gathered the last of his strength, and forced his head back.

Sora saw his movement through her tears, and focused on his face, with was beaded with rain and sweat, and shaking as he forced breaths into himself.

"Sor..Sora..I..i lov…"

As the rain fell silently, Izzy died in Sora's arms, his last words unable to escape him, as his blood collected around them, and Sora painfully pulled him tighter, clutching him to her now shivering figure. Off in the distance thunder rolled, as Koushiro's pained life was torn from him and he died in the arms of the one who had always been there for him when the rain had fallen before.

*****


End file.
